What Homeowners Say
Scott H.
"Serenity did a great job on our patio. They came out sooner than I expected and the new space completely changed how we use the backyard."
Maria L.
"From the first design meeting we felt heard. The fire pit and seating wall are exactly what we pictured, and the crew left the site spotless every day."
Dave & Karen R.
"One team designed and built the whole outdoor kitchen, so there was a single point of accountability start to finish. Couldn’t be happier."
Lighting Design-Build
Lighting Planned Around How You Use the Yard
Jon lays out lighting the same way he designs a patio, starting from where people walk and where they gather. He looks at the yard from the driveway, the back door, and the kitchen window, because much of your lighting is seen from inside the house. Fixtures go where they light a surface or a tree without shining into anyone's eyes.
Lighting also extends to the features in your yard. We light seat walls around a fire pit, set submersible fixtures in a pond or waterfall, and plan both into the same system as the rest of the yard.
Explore Lighting Options
Find the Right Lighting for Your Yard
Path and Walkway Lights
Low fixtures along a front walk or garden path. Each pool of light meets the next, so the whole path is easy to follow without lighting it like a parking lot.
Step Lights
Small fixtures set into the riser or the wall beside each step, aimed down onto the tread. Steps are where people trip after dark, and a light at each tread shows exactly where the edge is.
Wall Cap and Seat Wall Lights
Slim fixtures tucked under the cap of a retaining wall or seat wall. Light washes down the face of the stone and brings out its texture, with the fixture itself out of sight.
In-Ground Paver Lights
Flush fixtures set into a patio, walkway, or driveway. They mark borders and edges while sitting level with the pavers, so feet, shovels, and tires pass right over them.
Tree Uplighting
Fixtures at the base of a tree aimed up into the canopy. A mature maple or oak lit from below becomes the anchor of the yard at night, and shielded fixtures keep the light on the branches and out of the neighbors' windows.
House and Facade Lighting
Soft light across the front of the house, set close to stone or brick to bring out its texture or spread wider across siding and columns. The house looks finished at night, and guests can find the front door.
Where We Build
Across Southwest Michigan
Serenity Outdoors is based in Schoolcraft and builds throughout Kalamazoo County and the surrounding Southwest Michigan communities, reaching the lakeshore at the southern end.
Inland communities
Lakeshore corridor
Why Serenity
Why Homeowners Choose Serenity Outdoors
We Plan the Wire Before We Place the Fixtures
Low-voltage lighting loses power over long stretches of wire, which is why the last fixture on a poorly planned system glows dimmer than the first. We size the transformer to the full layout and split the wiring so every fixture gets even power. Wire that crosses under a patio or walkway goes through conduit, so it can be reached later without pulling up pavers.
We Use One Designer from Beginning to End
Jon designs the lighting and stays on the project through the install with Isaac and Daniel. You're not handed from a salesperson to a crew that never saw the plan. Jon is there when the fixtures go in and when we aim them after dark.
We Make It Easy to Build in Phases
Lighting is one of the easiest parts of a yard to add in stages. We size the transformer with room to spare, so fixtures you add next year connect to the system you already have.
Certified & Recognized
NDS Certified Drainage Contractor
ICPI Certified Concrete Paver Installer
Who We Build For
Built for How You Live Outside
We work with homeowners in Southwest Michigan who want to use their yard after dark. If you're lighting one walkway or a full outdoor living space, we invite you to check out our design process.
How To Get Started
Four Steps From Idea to Build
Contact
You'll talk with our team to discuss your project, budget, and whether we're a good fit for your yard.
Consult
We'll come visit your property and assess the space and your needs.
Customize
You'll receive a fully custom proposal and design.
Contract
Once you sign the contract and submit your deposit, we'll get started.
Imagine It
Picture the Finished Space
It's a Tuesday in November, dark by 5:30. You pull into the driveway, and the walk to the front door is already lit. The big maple out front glows from underneath, and every step up to the porch is easy to see.
Schedule a Design ConsultationFAQs
Landscape Lighting Project Questions
Still not sure about something? Give us a call, we'd rather talk it through than leave you guessing.
269-274-3947How much does landscape lighting cost? +
Fixture count, fixture material, transformer size, and how far the wire has to travel all move the number. A few path lights along a front walk sit at the low end. A full system with uplit trees, lit walls, and the front of the house sits higher. We go through firm pricing at the consultation.
Is low-voltage lighting safe? +
Yes. The transformer plugs into an outdoor outlet and steps household current down to 12 volts before it reaches the yard. At that voltage, the wire can be buried shallow, and a nick from a garden spade won't shock anyone.
Can you add lighting to an existing patio or wall? +
Yes. Wall cap lights can often go in by lifting the caps and resetting them. Path lights and tree uplighting don't touch the hardscape at all. In-ground paver lights are easiest during a new build, but they can be cut into many existing patios.
How do the lights turn on and off? +
Most systems come on at dusk with a photocell or a timer that tracks sunset through the year, then shut off at a time you choose. App control is available if you want to adjust settings from your phone.
Will the lights hold up in a Michigan winter? +
We place path lights where plows and snowblowers won't catch them and set them tall enough to clear a normal snowfall. Paver lights sit flush with the surface and can be shoveled over.
Will the lights shine into my neighbor's yard? +
Not when the fixtures are aimed correctly. We use warm, shielded fixtures pointed at the surfaces we want lit, which keeps glare out of windows and the sky above the yard dark.
Keep Exploring
Related Services
Patios & Walkways
The living surface that ties the backyard together, sized and shaped around how you use the space.
Explore →
Retaining & Seating Walls
Walls that hold a grade or wrap a patio with built-in seating, structure and comfort in one.
Explore →
Outdoor Steps
Serenity Outdoors designs and builds stone and paver steps across Kalamazoo County and southwest Michigan
Explore →